The Woman Assassin
by Shadowkitty934
Summary: Lilliana has been living under the care of Giovanni and Maria Auditore since her mother died and left her daughter to her friends. When tragedy strikes the family, Lilliana must join Ezio as they discover why this happened to their family along with who the Auditores truly are. (Based of AC II. Ezio and OC.)
1. Chapter 1

Chapter One

"Lilliana!"

A voice broke through my reverie. I jumped to my feet as two men, one old and the other younger, approached my perch at the edge of the fountain. I dipped into a curtsey as my instructor had taught me.

"What are you doing out here, my dear?" the older man asked me.

I gestured to the fountain behind me. "I was simple enjoying the beauty of the garden, Master Auditore."

A warm smile crept onto the corners of his mouth. "It is a beautiful garden, Lilliana, but I must insist that you do not tarry here for too long, my dear. Florence is not as safe as it once was."

I dipped into another curtsey. "I understand. I will return to the estate in a few moments."

"Very good, my child." Master Auditore smiled at me warmly. "I must tell you that you are looking like your mother each day. She would be proud to see how fine of a young woman you have grown to become."

A flush spread across my cheeks. "You words warm my heart, Master Auditore. Thank you."

Before he could respond, a young man raced through the gate of the garden. He bowed to Master Auditore before he spoke. "My deepest apologies for disturbing you, Master Auditore. You are needed quite urgently at the bank."

Master Auditore nodded at the young man before thanking him for delivering the message. "Very well. Return to the bank and tell them I will be shortly." The man bowed again and left through the gate. Master Auditore turned to his son. "Ezio, please escort Lilliana back to the house and inform your mother where I have gone. I do not know how long I will be occupied, so tell her not to keep supper for me. I will eat when I return."

"But… Father-" Ezio began to protest.

Master Auditore cut Ezio's protests off sharply. "Son, you will do as I say! Lilliana is in my care, and you will protect her as you would your mother or your sister." His voice gentled as he continued, "Now, you will do well to avoid the guards. I sense there may be trouble brewing, and I do not want you mixed up in any misunderstandings. When you arrive, do not leave the house until I return. Make sure you tell your brothers as well."

"Yes, Father," Ezio said.

Master Auditore bade us farewell and exited the garden. I turned to Ezio, but he barely spared me a glance. "Let's get you home, Lilliana."

"Ezio…?" I queried quietly.

"What is it?" he said with a disinterested tone.

"Why is it that you dislike me so?" I asked him, an edge of hurt to my voice.

Ezio focused his gaze on me and was silent for a while, turning my words over and over in his mind. "I do not dislike you, Lilliana," he finally answered. Our eyes met, and we stared at eat other for a few moments. I felt a warmth spreading across my cheeks. I began to feel shy, but I did not understand why felt that way.

The moment was broken when Ezio extended his arm to me in offering. "Come, Lilliana. We must get home, quickly." I looped my arm through his, and we left the beautiful garden behind. The shadows of the buildings we longer than I had been expecting. I glanced up and noted the orange glow in the western sky.

"It is nearly sunset, isn't it?" I asked. "That is why you and Master Auditore came to search for me?"

"Yes. Mother was growing worried." Ezio's words had an edge to them. I could sense Ezio's tension from the way he held his arm, but I could see none of it on his face. "There is something… wrong. I feel as though we are just in a calm before a terrible storm comes."

"Yes, there has been a certain tension in the air," I agreed.

We were hurrying a down a busy street when Ezio suddenly pulled me into a side alley. "Be still," he whispered. I held my breath as a patrol of city guards went by our hiding place. I overheard a snippet of their conversation that sent chills racing down my spine.

"…Auditores are being accused of murder and treason. We go to make an arrest tonight."

I felt Ezio stiffen beside me. When the last of the guards had passed by, I peeled myself from the wall we had been pressed up against. "Ezio! Ezio, we must warn your father," I pleaded in a desperate whisper. "Ezio!"

He must have heard the urgency of in my tone, for Ezio unfroze a moment later. He pulled me along without another word. We continued to dodge the guards patrolling the streets by taking many alleys and side streets I had never known existed. By the time we had reached the Auditore house, the street lamps were being lit.

Ezio carefully pulled open the gate and peered around the corner. "It is alright," he assured me. We entered the estate alert for any signs that something was amiss. Ezio pushed the gate closed before joining me to look around. There was a silence in the air that chilled me to the bone. "What would you have me do?" I asked, my voice barely a whisper.

"You will check the bedchambers for any sign of my family or any clues you can find," Ezio told me. "I will check my father's study. We will meet back here in a quarter of an hour with anything we may find.

I nodded and turned to enter the living part of the estate. The house was devoid of any life, for there were no torches lit on the walls and the usual sounds of the house were absent. I climbed the stairs and made my way to the bedchamber of Claudia, Ezio's sister. I opened the door, and the room was empty as I had expected. Claudia's desk, usually covered with papers or books, was bare. Her room had been searched, that much I was certain, and the searchers had done poorly putting everything back in its place. I found a similar situation when I opened the door of Ezio's brothers', Federico and Petruccio, bedchambers.

I closed the door of Ezio's equally disheveled bedchamber and made my way to the bedchamber of Master Auditore and his wife. A gasp of horror escaped my throat when I looked at the mess before me. The usually spotless room had been torn apart as if a destructive wind swept through the room. Books and papers covered the floor. The wardrobe had been ripped open, and its contents were scattered across the room. Every drawer in Master Auditore's desk had been upturned and searched.

A small sound reached me through my shock. I held my breath, listening as hard as I could. The sound reached my ears again. I recognized the voice of Maria, the wife of Master Auditore. I raced across the room and found her in a crumpled heap on the floor near the bed. "Maria!" I cried, dropping to my knees next to her, and I clasped her hand in mine. Her skin was icy. "Maria, answer me! It is I, Lilliana. Please, you must tell me what happened!"

Maria opened her eyes, but she did not see me. Her gaze was locked onto something I could not see. "They took them!" she gasped.

"Who? Who did this, Maria?"

Maria's breath was becoming more labored. Her head turned towards the sound of my voice, and her eyes met mine. "The Templars did this…" she whispered. A long breath escaped her lungs, and she was silent. Her hand went limp in mine. I laid my head on her chest, but I heard no beating of her heart. Maria was dead.

I do not know how long I knelt there, tears streaming down my face, but the sound of footsteps broke through my sobs. I could not bring myself to move though. A warm hand wiped the tears spilling down my cheeks. "Who did this?" Ezio's voice stabbed like a dagger. I chanced a look at his face. His usually gentle eyes were gone, replaced by embers of hatred and fury.

"She only mentioned some group called the Templars," I choked out. I took a deep breath to steady my voice. "I haven't the faintest idea who they are though."

"That's alright," Ezio told me. He put his arm around my shoulders and squeezed. "There were papers in my father's study that the searchers missed. They mentioned these Templars, and there was mention of a Brotherhood. It seems my father was a member of the group."

We sat in silence a moment. "You must speak to your father, Ezio. He could explain why all of this has happened," I said, breaking the silence. "They must have taken your father and siblings to the prison tower."

"How am I to speak with them then?" Ezio asked me. "I am perhaps the most wanted man in Florence right now. If they are accusing my family of treason, I doubt that anyone would be permitted to speak to them. I could not just stroll into the prison and speak with them."

A mad idea was forming in my mind. "The guards need not know, Ezio."

"What do you mean?"

"I have seen how easily you climb buildings. Why should the prison tower be any different?"

"Lilliana, whatever mad idea you have needs to leave your mind now!" Ezio snapped. "There are too many things that could go wrong, and I will not be putting you or myself in needless danger."

"Perhaps it will be dangerous. Perhaps many things can go wrong, but Ezio, we must try!" I exclaimed. In a moment of passion, I did not guard my words from jumping out. "Your father always told you to never give up! There is always a way to accomplish something. You must be creative and able to change your course of action at a moment's notice!"

Ezio's face turned to a look of surprise. "That's what father always told me when he taught me swordplay in the courtyard! How do you know he said all of that? You were ill in bed at the time."

The excitement I had felt growing inside of me drained out at his words. "I have been learning how to defend myself," I admitted. "I listened in and watched your swordplay lessons, and I practiced on my own in my room or in the garden." I pulled a small, beautifully crafted dagger from the folds of my skirt. "I saved my florins and purchased a dagger of my own to practice with."

"Lilliana, do you know how angry Father would be if he knew about this?" Ezio said after a few moments.

"Yes, and that is why I kept it hidden. Ezio, I would like to be able to defend myself if I ever have need. That is why I will help you find a way to speak to your father. It is not common knowledge that I am of your household, Ezio. The guards would never suspect me."

"Lilliana, you are not going to help me. It is much too dangerous for you. You could be captured, if not killed. The guards would not be kind to a young woman, you must know this! You are under my protection until my father is released or until I find you somewhere safe to stay. I would hardly be fulfilling my duty as your guardian if I allowed you to do something so stupid, so dangerous. You cannot go charging off into a fight with the city guards. We will find you a safe place to hide, and then I will go see if I can talk to my father."

"Ezio, I am an adult now. I am sixteen years old! I can make my own decisions!"

"You are still in my care. Until the day you are married, you will be under my protection."

"Very well, I accept that you are my guardian and are responsible for my safety. However, just because you are my guardian does not mean you can order me about as if I were a servant, Ezio!"

"Lilliana, please, listen to me. Do not needlessly put yourself in danger."

"Ezio, remember, you are not the only one to have lost family today. Besides, I have a plan that just may work… if you are willing to listen."

With a heavy sigh, Ezio shook his head. Disappointment shot through me. "Very well, Lilliana. I will listen to your plan of yours before deciding. You are right, we must work together."


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter Two:

"Guards! Please, come quickly!" I screamed, running towards the prison tower. The streets were mostly empty. "Guards! Help, please!"

A group of twenty guards raced towards me through the gate with their swords drawn. "What are you screaming about, woman?"

"I saw him!" I gasped, trying to catch my breath. "I saw the traitor's son. Ezio Auditore!" On our way towards the prison tower, Ezio and I had heard the town criers announcing the execution of Master Auditore and Ezio's wanted status. My gaze flickered to the gate, and I saw a shadow slip through the slightly ajar gate.

"Where is he, woman?" one of the guards demanded.

I pointed to the street behind me. "I saw him at the south market. He was entering the cathedral there when I passed by. I ran here as fast as I could."

The guard that had questioned me nodded to one of his fellow guards. "Take a few men and see if that boy is at the cathedral. Search the area carefully."

The man saluted and said, "Yes, sir!" All but three of the group left with him.

The first guard turned to me. "I need you to come with me, woman."

"For what purpose?" I asked, my voice innocent.

"Because I said it is so," he answered, a strange tone to his voice. His eyes ran down my body, lingering on my womanly spots. "The captain will want to… reward you personally if you have truly led us to the wanted traitor."

"Please, sir," I pleaded. "I must return home else my mother will worry after me. She is old and frail, and I must return to take care of her."

"I am not asking you," the guard said. He waved his arm, and the two other guards grabbed my arms and led me forward. "I find it hard to believe that a virtuous woman would be wandering the streets of Florence alone at this hour of the night."

We walked down several stone hallways lit by torches. Our shadows flickered against the walls. Once in awhile, a elaborate tapestry interrupted the bare stone. My escort finally stopped in front of a wooden door. One of the guards opened the door and pushed me inside of it. "The captain will be with you shortly," he said with a malevolent smile before slamming the door shut.

I looked around the small room. A single torch on the wall illuminated a bed in one corner and a roughly hewn tabs and chairs opposite of the bed. There were no windows on the unfriendly stone walls. I suppressed a groan. My hands felt along the folds of my skirt until I felt the handle of my dagger. I pulled it out of its sheath and examined the blade.

_The blacksmith had been reluctant to sell a woman a dagger. "It's not normal for a woman to know swordplay," he had said. _

_ "I am not a normal woman, if you haven't noticed," I had told him. "I will never share that you had this to me. I have the florins for it, isn't that enough?"_

_ "I just do not want you to attempt to fight someone and get hurt."_

_ "This is merely to practice."_

A sudden cacophony of voices outside the door startled me. My fingers fumbled clumsily to sheathe my dagger. The blade was in the sheathe to moment the door crashed open. A man, whom I assumed was the captain, in a decorated uniform stormed up to me, stopping inches from my face. "Where is he wench?" he shouted, spraying spittle in my face.

"I do not know, sire!" I cried, my voice filled with mock fear. "I only saw him enter the cathedral near the south market."

"My men tore that church apart, and we saw no signs of him!" the captain shouted.

"Please, sir! He must have gone elsewhere before your arrival," I pleaded. "He is very agile. I have often sighted him and his brothers running along the rooftops. "

"You expect me to believe that bullshit story? It is the middle of the night! No virtuous woman would be on the streets alone!" the captain ranted. "You are a whore, nothing more!"

I swallowed hard but remained silent. The captain's face twisted into a malicious grin. He gestured to the door, and one of the guards that had accompanied him shut the door, leaving me alone with the man. I tried to control my creating as the captain advanced towards me. "I know what a trollop like you wants," he said with a malicious chuckle.

I backed away from him until I felt the cool stones of the wall on my back. My hand reached for my dagger as, but the captain grabbed my arm and dragged me towards the bed. I tried to pull away, but he threw me so that I stumbled and landed clumsily onto the bed. He flipped me roughly onto my back.

My hand scrambled desperately to find the hilt of my dagger. My fingers closed around it as the captain's hungry face loomed over me. I could smell the wine on his rancid breath. As he lifted the hem of my skirt, my dagger flashed through the air and sank into the flesh of his throat. A gurgling sound came from his mouth as his eyes widened in shock. I pulled the blade from his flesh, and hot, sticky blood spurted from the wound, splashing onto my face.

I threw his weight and sat on the edge of the bed, staring at the fresh corpse on the floor. Shock coursed through me, blocking all other thoughts. "What have I done?" I whispered in horror. Something seemed to wake up in my mind. I took a deep breath to calm myself. "I must not panic. You can panic later. I have to escape. I must return to Ezio before he comes searching for me." I told myself.

A ring of keys flashed in the torchlight. I gingerly took them from the captain's belt. Before I left, I felt the need to apologize to the man I had just killed. "I'm sorry I had to take your life. I had to do it so that I may survive. Rest in peace." I turned to the door, pushing any unneeded thoughts from my mind. I pulled the door open with a slight protesting _creak. _There was no one outside of the door. I listened for a few moments, and hearing nothing but the sound of the torches and my own breathing, slipped into the hallway. The door swung shut with a small click.

I made my easy down the stone passage, using my memory to guide me towards the exit. I was halfway to the door when the sound of jubilant shouting echoed down the hallway. I started and looked over my shoulder. I saw many shadows on the wall at the other end of the hall. My eyes whirled around quickly, looking for a place to hide. A door was slightly ajar to my left. I squeezed through the crack as a group of guards rounded the corner. I could not make out their words, but their voices were raised with glee.

The group of guards passed by my hiding spot. I withdrew deeper into the room in case one of them saw me in the doorway. I was watching them carefully when something in the middle of the group caught my eye. I suppressed a gasp of horror when I saw Ezio in the middle of the group, being roughly pushed forward by two of the guards. My fingers automatically tightened around the hilt of my dagger.

My desire to help Ezio made my body move before I could think. As the last guard went by my hiding spot, I slipped into the hallway again. My hand flew to the guard's mouth, and my dagger raked across his exposed throat. Warm blood spurted through my fingers, and the man dropped heavily to the floor. Before there was time to react, I grabbed a second guard and cut his throat. The sound of his body dropping caught the attention of another guard. He turned around, and my dagger flashed in the torchlight as it found the throat of a third guard.

Fury coursed through me as another guard whirled around. "What the hell are you doing?" he shouted at me.

I pulled the blade from the throat of my latest victim, and I swung it at the guard closest to me. He caught my wrist in mid-air and held me up by it. Pain shot through my arm as he pulled me higher off the ground. My legs thrashed wildly, looking for some foothold to relieve the agony in my arm. My foot connected with the guard's upper thigh. Without warning, the iron grip on my wrist was gone, and I fell heavily on my backside.

The other guards had turned towards me and were approaching cautiously. Ignoring the pain in my arm, I lifted my dagger in a defensive stance. The guard I had kicked was getting to his feet. I swung my dagger at him and felt the blade meet flesh. He howled in agony and gripped his leg where a line of crimson blood flowed through the gash I had made. Another guard grabbed me and roughly dragged me to my feet. The dagger was wrested from my grip, and I heard it hit the stone floor a few feet away. My gaze flickered to Ezio's face, but I could not read his expression.

My arms were pinned to my sides by two of the guards. "What in the hell are you doing, woman?" one of the guards demanded. His face was livid and only inches from my own.

Anger and defiance welled up inside of me. I answered the guard by spitting in his face. He wiped the saliva off of his face with a look of murderous hatred. "Make sure this bitch never sees the daylight again." He turned from me as I felt cold, iron manacles close around my wrists. Two guards began to drag me down the hall, but I pulled against them, considerably slowing their progress.

"Ezio!" I cried. "Ezio, help me! You must fight them, Ezio! Do not give in to them so easily!" My only answer was a dead-eyed gaze. I felt all of the hope in my heart fade away as I stared at his face. The guards had regained their hold on me. "For God's sake, Ezio! Fight them! I need your help!"

I threw my legs out, and caught one of my guards in the knee. He stumbled slightly, and I managed to pull away from them. I ran towards Ezio, and the guards began to form a wall between us. I tried to shoulder through them, but they were ready. Two of them caught me and pushed me to the floor while another guard chained my ankles together. I was dragged to my feet and pulled away form Ezio again. "Ezio! Help me! Please! What would your father say to you for giving up so easily?" I cried. "Fight them, Ezio! Fight them!"

My next words were cut off before they left my tongue. A piece of foul tasting cloth was shoved into my mouth and knotted tightly behind my head. Tears were streaming down my face as I stared hopelessly at Ezio. Five guards surrounded me, restraining me. I pulled against them, exhaustion burning in my limbs. Their strength far exceeded my own, and they began to pull me down the hallway. I shot one last desperate glance at Ezio.

Through the haze of tears, I saw two of the guards watching my escort depart fall to the floor. Ezio was fighting! The sight renewed my strength, and I pulled harder against the chains binding me. My captors were not caught by surprise, but the sounds of a struggle caught their attention. Ezio had knocked down two more of his guards by the time my captors noticed him. Two of them pulled out their swords and charged Ezio. He dodged out of the way at the last possible moment, and the guards tripped over their fallen comrades. Ezio kicked one of them in the head, rendering him unconscious.

The second guard was getting to his feet. He was circling around to Ezio's back. I tried to shout a warning around the gag in my mouth, but the words could not make it past the thick cloth. Fury was welling up inside me again, and I tried to pull against my bonds again. The guard I had cut in the leg was one of the guards holding me. I tried to kick him in his bad leg, but the chains around my ankles prevented that.

My mind whirled, trying to formulate another plan. Ezio had noticed the guard circling him and had whirled around to face him. The two guards holding me shifted uneasily, swords at the ready. Ezio and his opponent were locked in a kind of graceful dance, each watching the other carefully as they mirrored each other's movements. Another mad idea snapped into my head.

As Ezio's opponent lunged at him, I threw all of my body weight down towards the floor, completely surprising my guards. I landed heavily on my back, but I quickly threw my legs out towards the guard with the injured leg. A flash of satisfaction filled me when I felt my kick make contact. The guard dropped to his knees again as I scrambled to my knees. I rammed my shoulder into him before he could recover, knocking him all the way to the ground. I heard his head crack against the stone floor, and he did not stir again.

I chanced a glance at Ezio. Despite the blood running from a gash on his arm, he had thrown his bound arms around the neck of his opponent and was head butting him. His leg connected with the guard's tender spot. Ezio released the man and shoved him to the floor where he lay groaning in pain. Before I could react, the last guard recovered. I felt myself being lifted off the ground, and the cold metal of a blade rested against my throat.

"If you make one more move, I will cut her from ear to ear," the man growled at Ezio. I saw the fear I felt mirrored in Ezio's dark eyes. He looked at me with desperation in his eyes. A sense of warm acceptance coursed through me. If I was going to die, why not die for a good cause? Ezio's life and freedom were more valuable than my own. I nodded my head at him, willing him to understand. I was willing to die for him, for his freedom.

"You don't have to kill her," Ezio said, his voice quiet. "I will surrender." I shook my head at him, trying to protest. He looked at me with sad eyes. "Lilliana, it is for the best."

The guard holding me did not relax his hold. The guard to Ezio to get on his knees and face the wall. Ezio did as he was told, and the guard went around his back, dragging me along with him. I struggled against the guard as he went to use his dagger to hit Ezio in the head. The guard ignored me and swung his dagger. Ezio ducked at the last possible moment, whirled around, and tangled his legs with the guard's legs. I was pulled to the ground, and starts swum in my vision as my head hit the stone floor. I heard the sounds of a struggle, but I could not process what was happening around me.

The absence of sound came to me as a surprise. Ezio came into my line of sight, a warm smile on his face. The cloth that had been in my mouth was removed, and I breathed in a lungful of sweet, fresh air. "Ezio, I am glad you are safe," I said, my voice weak.

"It is thanks to you, Lilliana," Ezio whispered. "We must get out of here."

"I do not know if I still have them, but I took a ring of keys from one of the captains," I told him. "Maybe there is a key to unlock these chains."

Ezio looked in one of my skirt pockets and found the keys. He studied them for a few moments before selecting a small silver key. He helped me into a sitting position and worked on the chains binding my wrists. After a few moments with no results, I felt the weight of the manacles drop from my wrists. Ezio cam around and unlocked the bindings on my ankles. "Thank you, Ezio."

I took the key form his and unlocked his bindings. Ezio thanked me and looked at me for a few moments before pulling me into a warm, strong embrace. "I could not have escaped the hangman's noose without your help, Lilliana. Thank you. I owe you my life, and that's a debt not easily repaid."

"I only did what was needed," I said. Ezio smiled warmly at me, and my heart seemed to skip a beat.

Ezio looked at the men laying on the ground. "We should salvage what weapons we can and leave this place." I grabbed a dagger coated in dried blood and a small sword from one of the smaller guards. Ezio equipped himself with a longer sword and two daggers. "Let's go, Lilliana, before anymore guards come."

I nodded, looking at the men felled by Ezio and I. I apologized to them for taking their lives before turning to leave. Ezio looked at me with a question in his eyes. I shook my head. "It's nothing. I am ready, Ezio."


End file.
